LifeWay Video Explaining the Store Closings

LifeWay shared this video at the SBC Annual Meeting which explained why they had to close the brick and mortar stores. I know there are people who are upset about that decision, but this video makes a compelling case.

This is the way all such decisions can and should be handled. LifeWay gave the straight scoop to the messengers – gave us the hard, cold, and yes, ugly facts. Can anyone listen to this and say they did the wrong thing?

Thank you, LifeWay, for trusting the messengers and being transparent on this issue. Thank you, Brad Waggoner, for your leadership during this interim.

I’ll comment. Credit someone with making a decision after LifeWay was found to be losing over $52,000 every day on their stores.

June 18, 2019 4:17 pm

Bill M

I agree WT

Hopefully, churches will make a few materials available for those seeking such. Maybe a table with several different titles for sale

June 18, 2019 6:53 pm

Mark Smith

Does anyone really see Lifeway prospering in the online format as a bookstore? Sure, they will sell the Sunday School material, VBS stuff, and the music tracks, plus the other church related things (background checks, etc.), but will people really buy a regular Christian book from them? Or a Bible? Why pay the shipping? I don’t see it happening.

June 18, 2019 7:42 pm

David Griffin

They may not become a big online retailer. But it has to be easier to be profitable there for them given what they have said about losing money at the brick and mortar stores.

June 19, 2019 8:10 am

Mark Smith

Well, I guess that depends upon what prosper means, huh. I guess if it means do better than losing $19 million a year, they will do well. I just don’t see how they will effectively sell Bibles and books to people individually like they did when they had a physical bookstore. Now, churches might buy in bulk Bibles from them, for example, to give/sell to new converts. They might sell thru Walmart. But they won’t sell directly on-line to people.

Look, I lived in the same city as a Lifeway bookstore. I get that they were losing money massively. But a lot of people were reached with the gospel thru those stores. People who would not go to a church yet would go to them. People who had no clue what Bible to get bought Bibles from them. People who needed prayer and had no idea what to do would go to them. I know because I saw it regularly. I helped people buy the right Bible for them when they were in there. That is all gone… Sure, that was financially necessary. But I do not want a report next year about the money they saved unless it tells me how many book they sold, and how many Bible they sold, compared to this year. I don’t want profit margins, I want people reached.

My guess is that most people already make these purchases online. And as he said, they are looking at partnerships with existing stores to put CSB and other products in stores.

June 19, 2019 10:52 am

Mark Smith

Yep, its all good.

June 19, 2019 11:49 am

Chris

There won’t be a lot of overhead operating an online bookstore. Even if a small minority churches are the only ones who buy books through Lifeway’s website, it would be enough to break even. At this point, a place like Lifeway wouldn’t even have to keep the books in stock. They could be stored and shipped through a third party. At this point, I think Lifeway is keeping an online option as a benefit to those who prefer to use them over Amazon, etc. (even if though they have to pay shipping).

June 19, 2019 9:51 am

Jeremy Byrd

I was told by our local rep that they are working on free shipping for certain purchases. He speculated it will expand as time goes on. Also, he told me about the “Authorized Distributer Program” for LifeWay and B&H, which gives churches discounted rates to offer them in your location. The problem is: 1) is the discounted rate significant enough? 2) apparently you have to establish a “bookstore.” I’m not sure of what that means, exactly

June 19, 2019 10:33 am

SV_Muschany

I could be wrong (seeing as I do not know you) but consider that you may be suffering from a generational disconnect. I am very close to the gen-x/millenial generational boundary. And while I would be an exception, very few younger than me ever bother going to bookstores (or most other non-grocery stores for that matter). The vast majority of their purchases are online, especially now that places like Amazon can have items shipped to you in as little as 2 days. I personally have a Prime account so in addition to the digital streaming, I get free 2 day shipping, and I more than pay for it over the course of a year. That is where most “young” people are at these days.

Further, many people my age and younger do not typically use physical bibles but rather digital on their phones and tablets. Again, personally I have my physical bible in NASB (that I have had for going on 15+ years) and my phone has a parallel ESV with Hebrew/Greek.

Consider that most national brand book stores have all closed up shop. Barnes and Noble is pretty much the only group still using brick/mortar stores. Even companies like Half-priced Books are only working because they deal in used books and trading books. If you want new, its B&N or online. Thats it. Lifeway is just following suit of the greater trend.

June 19, 2019 12:13 pm

Woody Whitt

Dave,
Hum, kinda tongue and cheek here but you know Lifeway revenues could have been helped if “ Critical Race Theory for Dummies” or “ Intersectionality for Bible Students” were available at its brick and mortar stores before Birmingham. The availability would have helped the messengers before they voted.
I am sure the Convention will put something out on CRT before the next annual meeting.
Woody

June 19, 2019 11:39 am

Mark Smith

go to Southeastern Baptist Theological seminary’s Kingdom diversity now website. There are several articles about it, including a 6 article summary of why CRT is not unchristian. Read it and you’ll understand why a certain crowd wants to use it for “analysis.”

June 19, 2019 11:48 am

Woody Whitt

Mark, Thank you I will.
woody

June 19, 2019 6:20 pm

Scott

I want to speak feel clearly on this issue if I may, because it seems that important and relevant observations have been missed. As of 2001, Lifeway had about 100 stores and 1500 employees. By the end of 2005, they had about 140 employees and were highly profitable. Their balance sheet was in excellent shape with little debt. The pension was fully funded at that time. Profits fell sharply in 2006 as Lifeway continued to expand. The store expansions continued and Lifeway was soon in the red. Lifeway continued to expand despite larger and larger losses. These losses were financed by underfunding the pension plan and in small part by moving to a building that cost less than the proceeds from the sale of the old headquarters.

This video seems to combine incomplete information with emotional manipulation to present a plausible reason for closing the stores without answering addressing the comprehensive state of Lifeway. The losses reported for the stores accounts for less than half the total loss, meaning their were no other revenues to cover other losses as was stated in the video. That statement seems simply false. Check out the financial statements for yourself. If the video is any indication of Lifeways’s commitment to professional management, the new boss is the same as the old boss. The real danger to me is that Lifeway will be managed into insolvency and default on the pension debt.

June 19, 2019 2:52 pm

Mark Smith

Scott, thank you for saying this. I suspected something similar from the report and data, but didn’t want to write it.